President's Message April 2018

PRESIDENTS MESSAGE       April, 2018            by Jim Buelow

Hello Dogwood Friends, hope all is well with all of you. It is hard to believe it is already April and hopefully Spring is here to stay.

 Susan and I have been on the road for most of the past 3 months and really enjoyed our trips. We spent 2 months in FL in the Cocoa Beach/Titusville area. We returned home on February 25^th, did a short turn around, and headed for the FMCA Convention in Perry, GA. From Perry to Myrtle Beach for 5 days, then to Havelock, NC for our great grandsons birthday party, and back home to reality on March 25^th. Highlights included: a special briefing and private tour of the of Cape Canaveral compliments of our daughter who was conducting a Teachers Conference there, viewing 2 space launches, relaxing on the beach, a casino cruise, attending the Dogwood Rally at TGO, collecting 16 shoe sized totes of sea shells (yes 16), attending our first FMCA Convention, and spending time with Dogwood and new friends we met along the way. It was a great trip and we look forward to traveling again soon. Now for a little Dogwood business.  

Jim & Bonnie Spain

David & Nanette Meyer

First, our chapter is growing. Please welcome new members Dave and Nanette Meyer and Jim and Bonnie Spain. Dave and Nanette are friends if ours and attended the Christmas rally. They liked what they saw and joined in

February. Dave and Nanette are a retired USAF family and reside in Yorktown,VA. Jim and Bonnie attended the TGO rally in FL as friends and guests of the Sohles. They also liked what they saw and also joined in February. Jim and Bonnie winter at TGO and spend summers in their home on Powatan, VA. They have known and have been friends of the Greenwoods and Tilmans for several years. Welcome Dave and Nanette, and Jim and Bonnie. We look forward to seeing you at future Dogwood rallies.

As all of you know, FMCA now accepts all self contained RVs into our organization, and the National By-Laws have been updated to reflect that change. At the chapter level, we still have the option to restrict our chapter to only motor homes, or to allow all RVs into our chapter. This will require a vote of chapter members. In the June time frame, we will send a ballot out to all members to decide on whether to continue as we are or change to allow all RVs into Dogwood. Please be thinking about this and be sure to vote when you receive the ballot.

This is an election year for our chapter officers. I know it's a bit early in the year, but we need to start thinking about it. I will query all current officers in the next few months to see who may or may not be interested in staying on for another term, and let Buck Buchanan know, as he is the Nominating Committee Chairman. We are also in need of a new member for our nominating committee as one member has dropped out. We will elect a new one at our next rally in May. Please consider stepping up to serve your chapter. Buck and his team may say, “I WANT YOU”.

As we move through the year, we have some interesting and fun rallies coming up, the first of those next month in Kentucky. More info on those rallies is included in Donna Hills Rally Master report. Please join in on the fun and support our rallies. And thanks for all you do to make Dogwood the great chapter that it is.

Regards and SAFE Travels,

Jim